Ten years later
John swung his Fruit Knife at the Orange Mushroom and it gave a loud shriek. Wincing at the sound, he jumped when a blue glow erupted around him, signaling his level-up. Cheering, he jumped up and exclaimed, "Yes! Level 10 at last!" After bathing in this success for a few minutes, he turned and walked towards a sign that said "Southperry". As he neared the town, a brown haired figure caught up to him, panting. Happily, he said, "John! Guess what! I just got to level 8!" Sardonically, John countered, "Awesome, Kurt! I just reached level 10!" Kurt replied, "Cool! I think Kelly and Mark just got to level 10 as well... They should be waiting for the boat to depart." Looking down at his watch, the present his deceased father had given to him, he shouted, "HOLY CRAP! We've only got two minutes until the ship leaves... we gotta run!" Taking off, they ran towards the port in the distance, watching as the sails were hoisted and the anchor being raised, getting closer every second. Panting, they collapsed in front of the captain, who raised an eyebrow and waited for them to recover. After some time, he raised out his hands and helped the boys up, introducing himself. "I'm Shank... do you want to get on this ship?" When they nodded fervently, he continued, "Do you have money for this ride?"
John fished around in his pocket and retrieved a stack of notes and coins with maple leaves inscribed on them. Handing it to Shanks, he grabbed Kurt's wrists and rocketed up the gangplank. He skidded to a halt just before he crashed into the two figures, crashing to the ground again. "I thought you two would never get here in time!" The blond haired girl looked down at them, saying. "Aw, shut up, Kelly. We could have made it at any time, but we wanted a...
dramatic entrance." Kelly gave a smirk to the boy standing beside her, and said, "Dramatic, my butt," just loud enough for the four of them to hear. When John and Kurt gave her a face, she said, innocently, "What?" Turning, she headed up the gangplank, ignoring the two prone figures hanging on for dear life as the ship prepared to leave.
Reaching the deck of the ship, Kurt looked around. Kelly was seated next to a figure with long and dark hair, and speaking to him, somewhat heatedly. "Well, it looks like you owe me 200 mesos, Mark." The boy grudgingly said, "Fine," and handed over two bills with "100" inscribed in the corner. Turning to John and Kurt, he continued, "So, what are you two going to be?" Before Kurt could answer, Mark interrupted, "Yeah, I know you're going to be a magician. What else could you be?" Turning from the rails, John laughed, and said, "I'm gonna be a warrior. What about the both of you?" Contemplating that for a moment, Kelly said, "I think I'm going to be a rouge." Grinning, Mark said, "What an...
interesting job choice for a girl. Archer here."
Lapsing into silence, the four sat and stared over the rails at the blue skies, waiting anxiously for the ship to land in Lith Harbor.